Background
Within the Draft Core Strategy South Somerset District
Council (SSDC) identified the need for an Urban Extension to be
built in Yeovil for 3,700 dwellings, 23 hectares of employment land
and associated infrastructure. Three potential strategic locations
for the Urban Extension were identified by SSDC and presented
within the Draft Core Strategy for public consideration. As an
outcome of the consultation process the Council received criticism
regarding the level of detailed information the Council held in
respect of potential transport impact. This topic was considered
particularly important, as it was a major issue in the
determination of the Council's preferred direction for
growth.
The report by Parsons Brinkerhoff was commissioned
by Somerset County Council (SCC) on behalf of SSDC to address
these concerns and present, in highways and transport
terms, the most appropriate location for growth. The County Council
were asked to consider three additional options to the three set
out in the Draft Core Strategy, two to the north and one to the
south, effectively an amalgamation of the southern and
south-western options. These options emerged from early
engagement with Town & Parish Councils and the
amalgamation option was considered a pragmatic approach reflecting
emerging evidence on location.
In order to model traffic generated by the options,
working assumptions were required by the County Council of the more
specific locations for housing, employment and open space and these
were provided by the Spatial Policy Manager.
In view of the potential importance of the
report in informing the decision over the proper location for the
Yeovil Urban Extension, the Council invited all respondents to
the Draft Core Strategy consultation who commented on
the traffic and transport implications associated with
the urban extension to make further response in relation to
transport issues raised by the report and relevant to the urban
extension. This further consultation closed on Friday 15
April.
Yeovil Traffic
Modelling Report (February 2011)
All comments received during the consultation have
been read and considered by both South Somerset District Council
and Somerset County Council Officers and used to further inform the
decision making process in respect of the direction for growth for
the Yeovil Urban Extension. All responses to the Yeovil Traffic
Modelling Report have been summarised by SSDC Officers for ease of
understanding and responded to by SCC Officers.
Summary of Representations & SCC
Responses
As an outcome of consultation responses, Somerset County
Council have commissioned a further addendum report to the Yeovil
Traffic Modelling Report to address concerns raised. This addendum
report is available to view below.
Addendum Report (June 2011)
The Infrastructure Requirements for Yeovil Urban
Extension Report (November
2011) brings
together earlier work (included in the first Yeovil traffic
modelling study in February 2011) with further potential
options that have been considered, to give an idea of
highways access requirements and preliminary cost estimates of a
range of options for locating the proposed Yeovil urban
extension.
All documents can also be viewed on the Somerset County Council website
SSDC is
now progressing towards a final preferred option for the Yeovil
Urban Extension that will be presented in the forthcoming
Publication Plan anticipated in Spring 2012. To inform this
Plan SSDC have commissioned further modelling work which will test
the final preferred option and an alternative scenario to ensure
modifications to the sites are robust, both in wider transport
terms and specifically the Cartgate Roundabout which has been
identified by the Highways Agency as a key junction of concern.
This further Traffic Sensitivity Report will be used to inform the
Publication Plan and is available below.
Addendum Report 2 (January
2012)
Following comments from the Highways Agency on Addendum
Report 2, further technical work was undertaken (report). The Highways Agency have
stated that, having reviewed the report, they are content that
methodology and approach taken is technically
sound.
It
is important to note that this piece of evidence has been provided
to assist with analysing the various options for locating an urban
extension(s) and it is not intended to reflect definitive works
required to implement any particular option. Such detailed work
would be required when a more precise location(s) is
known.
Please Note: This informal
consultation was in support of the original consultation exercise
and was therefore not open to the general public who had their
opportunity to comment between October and December 2010. There
will be a further opportunity to comment once the next stage
of the Core Strategy, the Publication Plan, is
reached.